Barnard Park Masterplan feedback Exercise – October 2015

Introduction As part of a long standing local initiative to make improvements to Barnard Park, Islington Council recently undertook a feedback exercise with local residents and stakeholders of Barnard Park. Several elements of the park have been identified as being in need of improvement, such as the entrances, the Redgra sports pitch, routes throughout the park and the buildings within it.. The original consultation process held in 2014 was extensive. 4 options were proposed and released with a series of question relating to peoples use of the park, and how they might like to see it improved. A detailed analysis of the 430 responses was carried out, and a preferred option chosen to be the basis for further masterplan development. In order to inform members of the public as to this final plan, a feedback exercise was conducted. This report provides the results of this exercise. Methodology The feedback process ran from 4 October to 31 October 2015. A consultation document was created, showing a project masterplan of the proposals, information relating to possible phasing of the proposed works, and a series of artistic impressions of how the park will look in the future. A section of the Islington Council website carried details of the process, including a link to an online survey where individuals could give their views on the proposals. Hard copies of the masterplan document were sent to a number of local premises, such as local libraries, health centres and community hubs, giving people the opportunity to comment via a freepost feedback form. 1000 houses in the vicinity of the Park were also sent a leaflet advertising the feedback exercise. Respondents were asked to give their opinions on the details of the proposals and if they wished, provide some basic personal details about their gender, age, and whether they lived or worked near the park. Two information events were organised to give members of the public an opportunity to view the proposals and to discuss them with Islington Council staff and the design team. The events were held at the Barnard Park Adventure Playground, and in collaboration with the Friends of Barnard Park, at the Church on the Corner, both in very close proximity to Barnard Park. Posters advertising the open events were placed at the entrances to the park and in key areas within the park, as well as staff making themselves visible to the passing public with several drawings to encourage comment. Results During the feedback period, over 200 individual responses to the masterplan were received, via the online survey and hard copies. Several responses were received by email, and one letter was received. Responses were also received from the following groups. Barnsbury Estate Community Organisation (BELMO)

Islington Police Warthogs Rugby ClubSport England joint response with the Football Association and Rugby Football Union. The results were entirely qualitative, as respondents were simply asked to provide comments on the proposals; they were analysed and grouped in the following way. Positive – comments were generally supportive of the proposals, with suggestions of further improvements, or minor changes to existing recommendations. Neutral – comments did not indicate a strongly positive or negative opinion of the proposals, and generally gave a variety of suggestions about the proposals, or comments on the existing condition of the park Negative – comments were generally not supportive of the proposals, with a variety of reasons why the respondent was not supportive of the improvements. Table 1: General responses – positive, neutral or negative analysis % Total number of submissions Positive Neutral Negative

203 95 86 22

46.80 42.36 10.84

Within the responses, there were a number of common themes as areas of concern or suggestions for improvement. These have been collated in the table below. Table 2: Main feedback analysis Main feedback point Total number of respondents giving specific suggestions or comments Do not want 11 a side pitch Football pitch - proposed size of pitch too small Lack of running provision Lack of other sports provision Eid arrangements - event use of pitch should be retained Unfair consultation process Football pitch - arrangements for charging local residents Waste of money Lack of theme park rides Lack of council upkeep Phasing of works - will it all happen? Safety of park users Facilities for outdoor learning Cycle parking at entrances Bbq area - becoming messy and unsightly Fundamental design flaws

% 104 43 21 10 8 5 4 2 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

41.35 20.19 9.62 7.69 4.81 3.85 1.92 1.92 1.92 0.96 0.96 0.96 0.96 0.96 0.96 0.96

Analysis of results The overwhelming majority of respondents to the feedback process were positive or neutral in nature. A minority of responses that did not support the proposals were mainly centred on the reduction in the size of the football pitch, as well as concerns expressed in a letter from Sport England. Whilst there were a fairly broad range of responses on a number of topics, the majority of these were concerned with the size of the football pitch in the new proposals. On this topic, two thirds of the comments relating to this element were in support of a proposed 7-a-side 3G pitch, whilst one third were opposed to the reduction in size of the pitch and wanted the existing provision retained and upgraded. Comments on specific feedback Comments have been given on those areas of specific feedback that have received 5 or more responses. Size of football pitch – the council is aware that the reduction in size of the sports pitch was likely to be one of the more contentious issues for any change to the park. The reduction was proposed in response to previous consultations, which identified local concern over the size of the pitch relative to the amount of use that it generated within the park, the difficulties this presented in people’s ability to easily get across the park, and the knock on reduction in possible alternative uses by the local community. The proposed masterplan and the provision of four options, all with a reduced pitch, is a response to this consultation exercise, and a smaller, improved pitch that increased flexibility was proposed to provide a high quality surface that could be used for both public and private hire. Lack of running provision – several comments were received that the existing Redgra pitch provides informal running provision, which was not replaced in the new plans. In response to this, the design team have reviewed the footpath network and calculated several possible running routes with an accurate distance measurement provided. An outline of this running plan has been provided here. As part of the masterplan proposals, there are a number of new pathways proposed, and below is a map showing a potential new running circuit.

Lack of other sports provision – The highest priority in the 2014 consultation was for a 3G artificial pitch. This had to be balanced against the need to provide as large a pitch as possible as there was also a strong view for this within the consultation. To achieve this new pitch, whilst also allowing for informal recreational space and improved circulation, it has not been possible to include a further Multi Use Games Area (MUGA) to increase provision for other sports such as basketball and cricket. Eid arrangements – In previous years, the local community has used Barnard Park for Eid celebration. Given the proposed changes to the park, this will continue to be possible in the future. It is worth noting that the creation of a new ‘village green’ in the space created by moving and reducing the Redgra pitch will also enable further events to be held on this space Next steps It is Islington Council’s intention to continue with the implementation of the improvements highlighted in Phase one of the masterplan document, which are shown here with an artistic illustration.

The council will submit a detailed planning application to the Local Planning Authority, which will afford members of the public and other groups and organisations further opportunity to comment on the proposals. Information will also be provided to stakeholders on how the works will be carried out as the project progresses toward construction. The council intends to ensure that the park can continue to be used and enjoyed whilst the improvement works are carried out, and minimise disruption wherever this is reasonably possible.